Hello again. I hope you had a wonderful Independence Day weekend! I love the 4th of July, and my birthday just happens to come the day before, so I always have a lot to celebrate in July. This year I spent the weekend at the lake, soaking up the sun and eating all my favorite foods, generously prepared by my friends. It was a lovely time, and I couldn’t resist sharing this sunset photo from my birthday night. Glorious!
I hope your weekend was as good as mine. I also hope you have had a chance to check out the July issue of the At Home magazine. I am so thrilled that our Independence Day get-together feature made the cover! It was such a fun time.
So fun in fact that it inspired me to give my house and garden a little festive flair, as well!
As you can see, the hostas in the front garden were in full bloom, adding to the celebratory mood.
And, now all the hyrdrangeas are beginning to explode!
In the perennial garden, things have been doing pretty well, especially the Chaste Tree, which has been in full force for a couple weeks, now.
In the fountain garden, the iris bloomed nicely…
…but the Crabapples unfortunately suffered from a bought of fire blight. I treated the blight, and all in all things look fine, however I may have to consider replacing the Crabapples with something less prone to disease. If so, I am thinking of going in a different direction altogether, perhaps with columnar Junipers. What do you think? If you have any suggestions, please leave a comment below. I would love to hear your ideas!
Around the corner, the cabana received its own dose of patriotism for the holiday!
And finally, the vegetable garden has been growing like a weed, producing piles of yummy vegetables, all thanks to this gorgeous gal, the sweet daughter of a good friend. With just a little help from ‘pops,’ she has been learning the ins and outs of gardening and has made the veggie garden a complete success!
So that is what has been happening Outside the Box around here. Now that the rains have stopped and hot summer temps have arrived, I might just be staying inside a bit more, haha, but either way I will see you next month. I hope you have a wonderful July!
Exterior designer Daniel Keeley is an Arkansas native and founder/principal of DK Design. His work has won numerous awards and accolades and is featured regularly in various publications. For more information visit dkdesignoutdoor.com.
